First post, so please forgive any inavertent foot-in-keyboard events.

I don't own an FD but I may be buying on this week. There is absolutely no intelligent reason for me to do it and I know enough to know that I don't know what I'm getting into. The information available here and through the links I've found here have been very helpful.

My question is how well an FD will stand up to daily driving with short trips. I won't be taking the car to the track, or doing any late-night streat racing. The performance of the Rx7 honestly will be completely wasted on me. If the car isn't driven hard, and maintained reasonably well, how well does it hold up?

 

forever...in the garage?, Well it's obvious if you don't tune the car at all, then it should last right guys?

 

the car was built for spirited driving/racing. if you are going to get one drive it the way its meant to be driven albeit responsibly and with care maintenance wise.

if you are going to coddle it throughout your time with it then you might as well just take a 12 gauge and pop the hood then have some target practice.

 

This is an oft-discussed topic. Rather than try to compile your own massive thread with the same answers, I recommend you to run the search function on this forum section with the keywords "daily driver".

Make sure to set aside plenty of time and park yourself for a while reading the FAQ:
https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showthread.php?t=68640

Dave

 

i've been researching the very same question for 3-4 months now, and theres still no final answer, atleast for me anyways.

the 3rd gen as a daily isn't known for its reliability, things will crap out on you. so you should keep about 3k around just in case, its not a question of if it'll die, but when it'll die. if you keep the fd as close to stock as possible, its longevity will be higher. although if you do the reliability mods " which im sure you'll find a link on the FAQ page" your chances will be better. im not saying its gonna live like a honda, but its prob gonna be as close as you can get.

oOo yea if you do buy an FD, make sure you do a compression test and or bring a rotary guru

 

Same myths being propagated over and over.

210,xxx miles and going strong. It's parked for 3-4 months during winter, but it runs nice. Needs work to keep it strong, but it's not that bad. It's not made out of glass!

 

My car is has 84,xxx miles and is running strong. I bought it at 59,000 miles 2 years ago. So in 2 years, I've put 25,000 miles on it. I think that's a lot to put on a FD. My car is also no where near stock...RUNS LIKE A FREAKING CHAMPION THAT IT IS!

 

Yeah, helpful.

 

if you have a good conservative tune with every reliability mod to keep it cool & enough fuel then you shouldn't have a problem. As this is my only car. I daily drive mines everywhere i go!

for the last 14months

 

Thanks for the reply.

I'm just not sure if that reply means; 1) "No, it won't hold up to daily driving", or 2) "Sure as long as you don't shoot it with a shotgun", or finally 3) "I really don't care about answering your question but felt a burning need to type something anyway". But then, I've always been a bit slow on the uptake.

 

drive it everyday,12 months a year, only problem i have had was created by the shop and had nothing to do with the car itself.

 

Thanks Dave. I have read the FAQ and did a search but didn't use the obvious keywords of "daily driver". I'll do that.

BTW, can anyone tell me how to quote multiple messages in a single reply? I have been looking and trying but so far have failed pretty miserably.

Dave

 

6,000 miles of daily driving in my FD over the past 2 years. Have spent roughly $400 in oil, filters, various sensors, gaskets, boost leak testers lol. $1000 in add-ons, sets of twin-turbos and replacement interior pieces that bother me until I replace them.

DD FD's are very possible, while not practical. But if you're a sports car nut, who really gives a damn? Nothing gets you ready to face the day more than putt-putting around town until your coolant temp. gauge tells you it's okay to flog the living **** out of it on the last straightaway before your exit for your work comes up.

 

My guess is the reality is somewhere in the middle. I certainly expect more in the way of maintenance, both by myself and someone who actually knows what they are doing, and I also expect to have more problems than I have with my other, more pedantic, vehicles. The Rx7 would not be my only car so that should help when it needs to be in the shop.

 

I drive mine 12 months a year, to and from work. 100+miles each day.. Weekends normally see 225+miles plus normal PLAY time.. Take care of it and it will last.. I won't give up for anything..

 

I've driven my 93 R1 as a daily driver some years and as a once in a while weekend only car for some years due to having multiple cars. I'm back to driving it daily again recently. I see no major problems driving it daily. 145,000 miles and still going strong. (Third engine)

 

The FD is not reliable in the sense that it can’t be driven anywhere. I put 100k miles on my car (actually I’m 3k short) It’s unreliable in the sense that performance wise you have to be on top of it if you want full potentitial. (boost problems, DP cluttering, motor mounts, 5th gear syncro, old turbos smoking...).

Engine rebuilts are not as common as you think, if you mod your car right. But if you **** up in your modding she bites and bites HARD. My first engine lasted 108K miles, my second 50k miles and it only blew up because my wastegate line came off so I overboosted to 23 psi. (I was only tuned for 15).

Is it reliable in the sense that it won’t strand you? Yep. I’ve never been afraid to drive my car ANYWHERE.

 

i have been DD'ing my FD for the 7 months or so that i have owned it and no problems yet (knock on wood). Of course i have all the reliability mods and make sure i keep an eye out for any maintenance required.

Really man it all comes down to a mix of luck and your willingness to learn about the car and do whats needed to maintain it. I say luck because these are all old cars now and you cant really know for sure what the cars have gone through in the past, most have gone through a few owners by now. So if its on the original engine and its high mileage.....good luck to u. Your best bet would be to find a car with a newly rebuilt engine with documentation.

A lot of the guys on this forum are very knowledgeable and are not out to get you, it just seems that way cuz they have heard this question asked at least a few times a week for the past 7 yrs or so that this forum has been around. It may sound like some guys r gonna try to steer u away from the FD and really man this car isnt for everyone. You have to really love the car or else ur gonna end up goin crazy when it does give u problems. And honestly man if u say the performance is gonna be completey wasted on u....then dont buy this car. Buy urself another car that will be cheaper and more reliable in the long run. Such as an S2000. Hopefully this helps you a bit good luck with whatever you choose.

 

Thanks for the feedback. It looks as if there are a number of you out there who do daily drive. That does help ease my mind a bit. I realize of course that it is highly dependent on how I maintain the car and how it was or was not abused before I would own it.

Dave

 

what i meant was make sure you do haul *** in it now and then. the whole shotgun thing was to put it out of its misery metaphorically speaking since FD's love to be driven fast!

besides, its good to redline this car now and then since rotaries are awesome at reving up as you will soon see

edit: check out this thread as to why it is important to redline your FD now and then
https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...arbon+build+up

 

Thanks for the clarification as well as the link. There is much I need to learn. I've already found a local rotary shop and I'm fortunate to live less than 10 miles from a very good rebuilder (who referred the rotary shop). I'm hoping to learn as little as possible the hard way.

 

You wont be wasting your money if you love the car.

 

Great points, thank you.

When I say that the performance is going to be wasted, I mean that you won't ever be seeing me post things like "I hit 145mph and was still accelerating before I backed off" or, "the 911 finally had me when I was in 4th doing 130". That isn't to say that I won't enjoy the performance while driving, but I won't be pushing it's limits. I'm an old fart at this point and tend to drive like one.

 

i dd my fd every day

 

This is the most successful "Can you DD an FD" thread, ever.

:golfclap: